Thursday, April 23, 2015

ICE do not have their 1st round pick, traded to Kamloops in the Tim Bozon trade. The pick now belongs to Saskatoon.
5th round pick was also traded to Kamloops in the Bozon trade.
12th round pick belongs to Lethbridge in the Lenny Hackman trade,
ICE have the Victoria Royals 5th round pick from the Jayden Sittler trade.

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Cranbrook, BC -- Jeff Chynoweth, General Manager of the Kootenay ICE Hockey Club, today announced the Club and Head Coach Ryan McGill have mutually agreed to part ways when McGill's contract expires on June 30, 2015. McGill, who just completed his third year as bench boss was also the Head Coach of the Edmonton / Kootenay ICE from 1997-2002.

“Ryan is a good coach and we are thankful for all the contributions he has made to our Club. However, at this time, we feel we need a fresh face and voice moving forward to lead our team. We wish Ryan the very best as he moves on in his coaching career,” continued Chynoweth.

In eight seasons behind the bench Ryan McGill had a career regular season coaching record of 280-222-53, including back-to-back 100 point seasons (1999-2000 and 2000-2001), two conference titles, two WHL Championships (2000 and 2002) and one Memorial Cup Championship (2002). He was also named the WHL Coach of the Year in 2012-2013 and Western Conference Coach of the Year in 2001-2002. In his seven post-season appearances Ryan posted a 53-33 career playoff record.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

ICE CHIPS: The KOOTENAY ICE finished the EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL against the CALGARY HITMEN with a 3-4 record (1-2 at home, 2-2 on the road, 1-2 in overtime)...KOOTENAY finished the 2014-15 regular season with a 37-31-1-3 record (21-13-1-1 at home, 16-18-0-2 on the road, 6-1 in overtime, 3-3 in shootouts) and in fourth place in the CENTRAL DIVISION and seventh place in the new playoff wildcard standings...The ICE clinched a playoff berth for the 17th consecutive season, the longest active streak in the WHL...KOOTENAY completed the regular season with a .500 or better record for a WHL record 16th straight year.

PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE: KOOTENAY holds a career playoff record of 96-77 (51-33 at home, 45-44 on the road, 25-14 in overtime)...The ICE have played in 32 playoff series in franchise history and hold an 18-14 career record...SAM REINHART (36), JAEDON DESCHENEAU (29) and LUKE PHILP (28) lead KOOTENAY in career playoff games played...REINHART leads the ICE in career playoff scoring with 35 points (13-22-35)...DESCHENEAU is second with 31 points (15-16-31)...KOOTENAY faced CALGARY in the post-season for the fifth time in franchise history (2-3 career playoff series record).

DID YOU KNOW: LUKE PHILP has been named the BOSTON PIZZA TOP PLAYOFF PERFORMER for 2015 after recording 12 points (5-7-12) in seven games...PHILP is ranked 172nd among NORTH AMERICAN SKATERS in the NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING FINAL RANKINGS for the 2015 Draft... TIM BOZON was re-assigned to the HAMILTON BULLDOGS of the AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE April 8...SAM REINHART was re-assigned to the ROCHESTER AMERICANS of the AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE April 8...RINAT VALIEV was re-assigned to the TORONTO MARLIES of the AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE April 8...VALIEV matched a club record for most goals in a game by a defenseman (two) March 31 against CALGARY, sharing the mark with MATT WALKER (March 31, 2000) and JAGGER DIRK (March 24, 2014)...JAEDON DESCHENEAU registered at least one point in all seven playoff games for the ICE...CALE FLEURY recorded his first career playoff point (assists) April 6 against the HITMEN...LENNY HACKMAN recorded his first career playoff point (assist) April 1 versus CALGARY...TIM BOZON amassed a career high five points in one game March 31 against the HITMEN (2-3-5)...KOOTENAY set a new franchise record for most goals in a playoff game between both teams (15) March 31 versus the HITMEN...The previous record of 13 was first set March 29, 2003 at KAMLOOPS (ICE 6 at BLAZERS 7) before being matched March 24, 2014 against CALGARY (ICE 6 vs. HITMEN 7 OT).

The ICE got goals from Sam Reinhart and Jaedon Descheneau, but saw their season come to a close in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Quarter-Final.

Calgary fired 10 shots at the Kootenay goal in the first period, taking the lead at 1:12 through Connor Rankin. The twenty year-old scored a hat-trick in the opening frame, with one of his three goals coming on the power-play.

Chase Lang helped the Hitmen to a 4-0 lead 4:44 into period two before the ICE found the scoresheet later in the frame. Reinhart deflected home a Cale Fleury point shot at 14:36 for his sixth goal of the playoffs.

Calgary restored their four-goal advantage at 3:31 of the third period through Radel Fazleev. His goal was cancelled out by Descheneau 24 seconds later before Hitmen captain Kenton Helgesen rounded out the scoring with 4:48 to play.

ICE CHIPS: The KOOTENAY ICE enter tonight's action with a 3-3 record (1-2 at home, 2-1 on the road, 1-2 in overtime) after six games of the EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL against the CALGARY HITMEN...KOOTENAY clinched a playoff berth for the 17th consecutive season, the longest active streak in the WHL...The ICE completed the regular season with a .500 or better record for a WHL record 16th straight year.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN: KOOTENAY is currently carrying 24 players (two goaltenders, nine defensemen and 13 forwards)...The ICE roster is made up of three 1994-born players, 11 1995-born players, three 1996-born players, five 1997-born players, and two 1998-born players...KOOTENAY has seven first-year players on its roster.

PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE: KOOTENAY holds a career playoff record of 96-76 (51-33 at home, 45-43 on the road, 25-14 in overtime)...The ICE have played in 31 playoff series in franchise history and hold an 18-13 career record...SAM REINHART (35), JAEDON DESCHENEAU (28) and LUKE PHILP (27) lead KOOTENAY in career playoff games played...REINHART leads the ICE in career playoff scoring with 34 points (12-22-34)...DESCHENEAU is second with 30 points (14-16-30)...KOOTENAY is facing CALGARY in the post-season for the fifth time in franchise history (2-2 career playoff series record)...The last playoff meeting between the ICE and HITMEN was the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL won by KOOTENAY in six games.

DID YOU KNOW: KOOTENAY posted a 3-4-0-0 record versus CALGARY during the 2014-15 regular season (2-2-0-0 at home, 1-2-0-0 on the road, 1-0 in overtime)...LUKE PHILP led the ICE in scoring versus the HITMEN during the regular season with 11 points (6-5-11)...LEVI CABLE (6-2-8) and TIM BOZON (2-6-8) were second with eight points...WYATT HOFLIN was named the VAUGHN HOCKEY WHL GOALTENDER OF THE MONTH for March on March 23...HOFLIN, who set a franchise record for games played by a goaltender in one season with 67, led all WHL netminders in minutes played during the regular season with 3,848, finishing second in the League in wins (36) and saves (1,837)...RINAT VALIEV and SAM REINHART were both named to the WHL EASTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ALL-STAR TEAM March 25...LUKE PHILP finished 15th in WHL regular season scoring with a career-high 82 points (30-52-82)...PHILP, who recorded a career high five points (2-3-5) April 3 at CALGARY, sits second in WHL playoff scoring with 12 points (5-7-12)…JAEDON DESCHENEAU (4-5-9) and TIM BOZON (3-6-9) are tied for fourth among WHL top playoff scorers with nine points...LENNY HACKMAN recorded his first career playoff point (assist) April 1 versus the HITMEN...ZAK ZBOROSKY and TANNER LISHCHYNSKY both recorded their first career playoff points (both assists) March 27 against CALGARY…TIM BOZON recorded a career high five points in one game March 31 versus the HITMEN (2-3-5)...RINAT VALIEV matched a club record for most goals in a game by a defenseman (two) March 31 against CALGARY...VALIEV shares the mark with MATT WALKER (March 31, 2000) and JAGGER DIRK (March 24, 2014)...KOOTENAY set a new franchise record for most goals in a playoff game between both teams (15) March 31 versus the HITMEN...The previous record of 13 was first set March 29, 2003 at KAMLOOPS (ICE 6 at BLAZERS 7) before being matched March 24, 2014 against CALGARY (ICE 6 vs. HITMEN 7 OT).

ONE YEAR AGO: After Game Six of the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL the ICE were 4-2 against the CALGARY HITMEN.

Kootenay forced a seventh and deciding game in their Eastern Conference Quarter-Final after rallying from a 3-1 series deficit.

The ICE opened the scoring on a first-period power-play as Tim Bozon slapped a shot past Calgary netminder Brendan Burke at the 13:40 mark. Kootenay took a 1-0 lead into the intermission despite being outshot 9-6.

The Hitmen responded in period two. Leading scorer Adam Tambellini tucked home his fifth goal of the playoffs at 11:19 to even the score at 1-1.

The ICE reclaimed the lead minutes later on an individual effort from Jaedon Descheneau, who created a turnover in the neutral zone before barreling in on goal and outwaiting an outstretched Calgary netminder Mack Shields.

The two sides continued to trade chances through to the late stages of period three when, off an odd-man rush, Philp cruised towards the Hitmen goal and snapped a shot off the crossbar and in to give the hosts a 3-1 lead.

Tambellini narrowed the gap to one goal with a short-handed deflection tally with 1:25 to play, but Kootenay added an insurance marker thanks to captain Sam Reinhart, who chipped home an empty-net marker in the dying seconds of the third period.

The ICE finished 2-3 on the power-play, while Calgary was 0-3.

Shields made 12 saves in relief of Brendan Burke in the Hitmen goal. The Calgary starter left the game in the second period after stopping 13 of 14 shots.

UP NEXT: the ICE and Hitmen will play Game Seven at Scotiabank Saddledome Monday, April 6th. Game time is 7:00 pm.

Saturday, April 4, 2015

ICE CHIPS: The KOOTENAY ICE enter tonight's action with a 2-3 record (0-2 at home, 2-1 on the road, 1-2 in overtime) after five games of the EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL against the CALGARY HITMEN...KOOTENAY clinched a playoff berth for the 17th consecutive season, the longest active streak in the WHL...The ICE completed the regular season with a .500 or better record for a WHL record 16th straight year.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN: KOOTENAY is currently carrying 24 players (two goaltenders, nine defensemen and 13 forwards)...The ICE roster is made up of three 1994-born players, 11 1995-born players, three 1996-born players, five 1997-born players, and two 1998-born players...KOOTENAY has seven first-year players on its roster.

PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE: KOOTENAY holds a career playoff record of 95-76 (50-33 at home, 45-43 on the road, 25-14 in overtime)...The ICE have played in 31 playoff series in franchise history and hold an 18-13 career record...SAM REINHART (34), JAEDON DESCHENEAU (27) and LUKE PHILP (26) lead KOOTENAY in career playoff games played...REINHART leads the ICE in career playoff scoring with 33 points (11-22-33)...DESCHENEAU is second with 28 points (13-15-28)...KOOTENAY is facing CALGARY in the post-season for the fifth time in franchise history (2-2 career playoff series record)...The last playoff meeting between the ICE and HITMEN was the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL won by KOOTENAY in six games.

DID YOU KNOW: KOOTENAY posted a 3-4-0-0 record versus CALGARY during the 2014-15 regular season (2-2-0-0 at home, 1-2-0-0 on the road, 1-0 in overtime)...LUKE PHILP led the ICE in scoring versus the HITMEN during the regular season with 11 points (6-5-11)...LEVI CABLE (6-2-8) and TIM BOZON (2-6-8) were second with eight points...WYATT HOFLIN was named the VAUGHN HOCKEY WHL GOALTENDER OF THE MONTH for March on March 23...HOFLIN, who set a franchise record for games played by a goaltender in one season with 67, led all WHL netminders in minutes played during the regular season with 3,848, finishing second in the League in wins (36) and saves (1,837)...RINAT VALIEV and SAM REINHART were both named to the WHL EASTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ALL-STAR TEAM March 25...LUKE PHILP finished 15th in WHL regular season scoring with a career-high 82 points (30-52-82)...PHILP, who recorded a career high five points (2-3-5) April 3 at CALGARY, is tied with ADAM TAMBELLINI of the HITMEN for the WHL playoff scoring lead with 11 points (4-7-11)...LENNY HACKMAN recorded his first career playoff point (assist) April 1 versus the HITMEN...ZAK ZBOROSKY and TANNER LISHCHYNSKY both recorded their first career playoff points (both assists) March 27 against CALGARY…TIM BOZON recorded a career high five points in one game March 31 versus the HITMEN (2-3-5)...RINAT VALIEV matched a club record for most goals in a game by a defenseman (two) March 31 against CALGARY...VALIEV shares the mark with MATT WALKER (March 31, 2000) and JAGGER DIRK (March 24, 2014)...KOOTENAY set a new franchise record for most goals in a playoff game between both teams (15) March 31 versus the HITMEN...The previous record of 13 was first set March 29, 2003 at KAMLOOPS (ICE 6 at BLAZERS 7) before being matched March 24, 2014 against CALGARY (ICE 6 vs. HITMEN 7 OT).

ONE YEAR AGO: After Game Five of the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL the ICE were 3-2 and after Game Six were 4-2 against the CALGARY HITMEN.

Luke Philp recorded, a career-high five points, including the overtime winner as the Kootenay ICE staved off elimination with a 5-4 victory over the Calgary Hitmen Friday at Scotiabank Saddledome.

The ICE rallied from a two-goal deficit to force a sixth game in their Eastern Conference Quarter-Final Saturday in Cranbrook.

Calgary opened the scoring just before the mid-point of period one when import forward Radel Fazleev outwaited ICE goaltender Wyatt Hoflin, tucking the puck in from the edge of the right crease for his first goal of the playoffs.

Kootenay answered back before the period was out on a power-play marker by Rinat Valiev, as the ICE capitalized on the first two-man advantage awarded to either team in the series.

Fazleev restored the Hitmen lead at 2-1 just 40 seconds into the second period, but his goal was cancelled out just over a minute later as a hard pass from Philp caromed off Cable's skate past Calgary netminder Brendan Burke.

Tallies from Jordy Stallard and Kenton Helgesen gave the Hitmen a 4-2 lead in the late stages of the period, but Kootenay again used special teams to their advantage.

Philp converted on a short-handed breakaway at 17:48 to cut the deficit to 4-3, then set up captain Sam Reinhart on an ICE power-play to tie the game at 4-4 nine seconds before the intermission.

Calgary outshot Kootenay 9-7 in period three with neither side able to gain an advantage before the end of regulation time.

In overtime, the Hitmen enjoyed the best chance early when leading scorer Adam Tambellini was set up on an odd-man rush three minutes in, but Hoflin stretched out with his glove hand to make a sprawling stop.

Philp found his game-winner minutes later firing a shot that caromed off Burke and a Calgary defenseman in front, giving the ICE their first playoff overtime victory since 2013, and first playoff extra-time win against the Hitmen since the year 2000.

Hoflin made 24 saves to collect the victory in goal for Kootenay, while Burke made 31 stops for Calgary.

UP NEXT: Game Six of the Eastern Conference Quarter-Final is set for Saturday night at Western Financial Place. Game time is 7:00 pm. Single game tickets will be on sale at the Western Financial Place Box Office at 9:00 am Saturday.

Friday, April 3, 2015

ICE CHIPS: The KOOTENAY ICE enter tonight's action with a 1-3 record (0-2 at home, 1-1 on the road, 0-2 in overtime) after four games of the EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL against the CALGARY HITMEN...KOOTENAY clinched a playoff berth for the 17th consecutive season, the longest active streak in the WHL...The ICE completed the regular season with a .500 or better record for a WHL record 16th straight year.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN: KOOTENAY is currently carrying 24 players (two goaltenders, nine defensemen and 13 forwards)...The ICE roster is made up of three 1994-born players, 11 1995-born players, three 1996-born players, five 1997-born players, and two 1998-born players...KOOTENAY has seven first-year players on its roster.

PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE: KOOTENAY holds a career playoff record of 94-76 (50-33 at home, 44-43 on the road, 24-14 in overtime)...The ICE have played in 31 playoff series in franchise history and hold an 18-13 career record...SAM REINHART (33), JAEDON DESCHENEAU (26) and LUKE PHILP (25) lead KOOTENAY in career playoff games played...REINHART leads the ICE in career playoff scoring with 31 points (10-21-31)...DESCHENEAU is second with 27 points (13-14-27)...KOOTENAY is facing CALGARY in the post-season for the fifth time in franchise history (2-2 career playoff series record)...The last playoff meeting between the ICE and HITMEN was the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL won by KOOTENAY in six games.

DID YOU KNOW: KOOTENAY posted a 3-4-0-0 record versus CALGARY during the 2014-15 regular season (2-2-0-0 at home, 1-2-0-0 on the road, 1-0 in overtime)...LUKE PHILP led the ICE in scoring versus the HITMEN during the regular season with 11 points (6-5-11)...LEVI CABLE (6-2-8) and TIM BOZON (2-6-8) were second with eight points...WYATT HOFLIN was named the VAUGHN HOCKEY WHL GOALTENDER OF THE MONTH for March on March 23...HOFLIN, who set a franchise record for games played by a goaltender in one season with 67, led all WHL netminders in minutes played during the regular season with 3,848, finishing second in the League in wins (36) and saves (1,837)...RINAT VALIEV and SAM REINHART were both named to the WHL EASTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ALL-STAR TEAM March 25...LUKE PHILP finished 15th in WHL regular season scoring with a career-high 82 points (30-52-82)...LENNY HACKMAN recorded his first career playoff point (assist) April 1 versus CALGARY...ZAK ZBOROSKY and TANNER LISHCHYNSKY both recorded their first career playoff points (both assists) March 27 against the HITMEN…TIM BOZON recorded a career high five points in one game March 31 versus the HITMEN (2-3-5)...RINAT VALIEV matched a club record for most goals in a game by a defenseman (two) March 31 against CALGARY...VALIEV shares the mark with MATT WALKER (March 31, 2000) and JAGGER DIRK (March 24, 2014)...KOOTENAY set a new franchise record for most goals in a playoff game between both teams (15) March 31 versus the HITMEN...The previous record of 13 was first set March 29, 2003 at KAMLOOPS (ICE 6 at BLAZERS 7) before being matched March 24, 2014 against CALGARY (ICE 6 vs. HITMEN 7 OT).

ONE YEAR AGO: After Game Four of the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL the ICE were 2-2, after Game Five were 3-2, and after Game Six were 4-2 against the CALGARY HITMEN.

The loss puts Kootenay down three games to one in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference Quarter-Final, with Game Five set for Calgary on Friday night.

Rankin and defenseman Travis Sanheim put the Hitmen ahead 2-0 10:10 into the game with similar rebound goals, but the ICE found the scoresheet with three and a half minutes remaining in the opening frame when Jaedon Descheneau slapped a slot past Calgary netminder Brendan Burke from the right-wing circle.

The Hitmen extended their lead in period two, firing 16 shots at Kootenay goaltender Wyatt Hoflin. A re-directed shot from Rankin put the visitors ahead 3-1 just shy of the four-minute mark before Kenton Helgesen wrapped a puck around the net following a turnover 1:28 later.

Rankin completed his hat-trick at 12:56 with a snap shot from the left circle.

The ICE cut their deficit to 5-2 before the midpoint of period three when Tyler King blasted a slapshot through traffic and past Burke.

Calgary sealed their third win of the series with a pair of goals inside the final four minutes. Tambellini slotted home an empty-net marker before Helgesen added a seventh Hitmen goal 35 seconds laters after a turnover the Kootenay zone.

Burke made 28 saves to record the victory for Calgary, while Hoflin stopped 33 shots for the ICE.

UP NEXT: Game Five is set for Friday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary. Game time is 7:00 pm.

ICE CHIPS: The KOOTENAY ICE enter tonight's action with a 1-2 record (0-1 at home, 1-1 on the road, 0-2 in overtime) after two games of the EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL against the CALGARY HITMEN...KOOTENAY clinched a playoff berth for the 17th consecutive season, the longest active streak in the WHL...The ICE completed the regular season with a .500 or better record for a WHL record 16th straight year.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN: KOOTENAY is currently carrying 24 players (two goaltenders, nine defensemen and 13 forwards)...The ICE roster is made up of three 1994-born players, 11 1995-born players, three 1996-born players, five 1997-born players, and two 1998-born players...KOOTENAY has seven first-year players on its roster.

PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE: KOOTENAY holds a career playoff record of 94-75 (50-32 at home, 44-43 on the road, 24-14 in overtime)...The ICE have played in 31 playoff series in franchise history and hold an 18-13 career record...SAM REINHART (32), JAEDON DESCHENEAU (25) and LUKE PHILP (24) lead KOOTENAY in career playoff games played...REINHART leads the ICE in career playoff scoring with 30 points (10-20-30)...DESCHENEAU is second with 25 points (12-13-25)...KOOTENAY is facing CALGARY in the post-season for the fifth time in franchise history (2-2 career playoff series record)...The last playoff meeting between the ICE and HITMEN was the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL won by KOOTENAY in six games.

EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL: Game Five of the EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL will take place at CALGARY on Friday, April 3.

DID YOU KNOW: KOOTENAY posted a 3-4-0-0 record versus CALGARY during the 2014-15 regular season (2-2-0-0 at home, 1-2-0-0 on the road, 1-0 in overtime)...LUKE PHILP led the ICE in scoring versus the HITMEN during the regular season with 11 points (6-5-11)...LEVI CABLE (6-2-8) and TIM BOZON (2-6-8) were second with eight points...WYATT HOFLIN was named the VAUGHN HOCKEY WHL GOALTENDER OF THE MONTH for March on March 23...HOFLIN, who set a franchise record for games played by a goaltender in one season with 67, led all WHL netminders in minutes played during the regular season with 3,848, finishing second in the League in wins (36) and saves (1,837)...RINAT VALIEV and SAM REINHART were both named to the WHL EASTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ALL-STAR TEAM March 25...LUKE PHILP finished 15th in WHL regular season scoring with a career-high 82 points (30-52-82)...ZAK ZBOROSKY and TANNER LISHCHYNSKY both recorded their first career playoff points (both assists) March 27 at CALGARY…JAEDON DESCHENEAU scored his fifth career playoff game-winning goal March 27 versus the HITMEN…Four of the five career playoff game-winning goals scored by DESCHENEAU have come against CALGARY...TIM BOZON matched a franchise record by recording six points in one playoff game March 31 versus the HITMEN (2-4-6)...BOZON shares the record with DESCHENEAU, who put up six points March 24, 2014 against CALGARY (1-5-6)...KOOTENAY set a new franchise record for most goals in a playoff game between both teams (15) March 31 versus the HITMEN...The previous record of 13 was first set March 29, 2003 at KAMLOOPS (ICE 6 at BLAZERS 7) before being matched March 24, 2014 against CALGARY (ICE 6 vs. HITMEN 7 OT).

ONE YEAR AGO: After Game Three of the 2014 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINAL the ICE were 1-2, after Game Four were 2-2, and after Game Five were 3-2 against the CALGARY HITMEN.

ICE forward Tim Bozon matched a franchise record for points in a playoff game with six points, while Rinat Valiev forced extra time with a goal four seconds from the end of the third period.

Kootenay opened the scoring 2:13 into the first period when Sam Reinhart rifled a shot over the shoulder of Calgary netminder Mack Shields from the left circle. His goal was cancelled out less than three minutes later by Chase Lang after the Hitmen winger pounced on a rebound in front of the ICE net, lifting a backhand shot over the pad of Kootenay goaltender Wyatt Hoflin.

Bozon and Calgary import Pavel Karnaukhov traded goals before the game was eleven minutes old before Tambellini rounded out a busy first period with a power-play marker at 17:18.

Lang added a second goal to give the Hitmen a 4-3 lead 7:44 into period two, banking a shot in off a leg from an acute angle to Hoflin's right.

The ICE narrowed the gap to 4-3 through Reinhart 1:14 later, but the visitors would reclaim a two-goal advantage with seven minutes left in the middle stanza when defenseman Travis Sanheim outwaited Hoflin after breezing into the Kootenay zone shortly after an ICE power-play.

Kootenay levelled the score at 5-5 before the end of period two on goals from Bozon and Valiev, then took the lead 2:12 into the third period when Matt Alfaro banked a shot off the pad of Calgary replacement netminder Brendan Burke from the goalline.

The see-saw affair continued thanks to two goals from the Hitmen courtesy Tambellini and forward Taylor Sanheim, the latter of which put the visitors ahead 7-6 with 6:41 to play.

The ICE again found an equalizer, forcing overtime on a one-timer from Valiev with four seconds left in regulation time. The Russian blueliner accepted a pass at the right circle from Luke Philp, slapping the puck past a screened Burke for his second goal of the game.

Tambellini, for the second consecutive game, ended the contest in overtime, slipping a shot from the right wing through traffic and past Hoflin 72 seconds into extra time, giving Calgary a 2-1 series lead.

Bozon led all scorers with six points (two goals, four assists), becoming the second ICE player to record six points in one game. Jaedon Descheneau accomplished the feat March 24, 2014 against the Hitmen.

Travis Sanheim led the Hitmen with a goal and four assists.

UP NEXT: Game Four of the Eastern Conference Quarter-Final goes Wednesday, April 1st at Western Financial Place. Game time is 7:00 pm.